FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 77, NO, 1 



on the dorsum immediately posterior to the 

 parietal spines. In the tail region several embed- 

 ded melanophores, sometimes fused, are on the 

 dorsal and ventral body midlines near the caudal 

 peduncle. These midline melanophores are pres- 

 ent in the same region as the midline pigment 

 shown on Waldron's (1968) reared 2-wk-old lar- 

 va. The pectoral fin blades are lightly pigmented 

 with elongate melanophores. Melanophores are 

 also present on the inner side of the pectoral fin 

 base but not on the outer side. The pelvic fins also 

 have a light scattering of melanophores. The 

 caudal fin base is unpigmented. 



During larval development, pigment increases 

 on the head over the brain. Occasionally one or two 

 melanophores are present on the snout. Melano- 

 phores lining the inner tip of the lower jaw and 

 those on the anteroventral margin of the maxil- 

 lary remain throughout the larval period. 



The melanistic shield over the gut intensifies 

 laterally and melanophoreson the ventral midline 

 disappear. The two to three stellate melanophores 

 on the dorsum posterior to the parietal spines dis- 

 appear by the time larvae are 9 mm long. 



In the tail region, the dorsal and ventral midline 

 melanophores near the caudal peduncle are no 

 longer visible on larvae >9 mm. 



The rayed portions of the pectoral and pelvic fins 

 remain lightly pigmented during the larval period 

 but melanophores are no longer present on the 

 inner side of the pectoral fin base in larvae >10 

 mm. 



During the transformation period, 12.8 to 18.6 

 mm, the amount of pigment increases gradually. 

 In the head region, internal pigment is added to 

 the opercle dorsally until a patch of 6 to 10 

 melanophores is visible on specimens >16 mm. 

 Internal gut pigmentation decreases in intensity 

 due to overgrowth by musculature. A few melano- 

 phores sometimes appear on the nape and beneath 

 spines V to XI of the first doral fin, although not 

 consistently until late in the transformation 

 period in specimens >17 mm. The most prominent 

 addition of pigment occurs dorsally in the tail re- 

 gion just posterior to the soft dorsal fin. Melano- 

 phores are added along the dorsolateral surface of 

 the caudal peduncle. Directly below these 

 melanophores, three or four internal and one to 

 four external melanophores are added along 

 the lateral midline in specimens >15 mm. The 

 amount of pigment on the pectoral and pelvic fins 

 decreases during this period. 



During the pelagic juvenile period, 18.9 to 42.4 

 mm, new pigment is added over the dorsal surface 

 of the head, interorbital, snout, premaxillary 

 (specimen >26 mm), and on the lower jaw (speci- 

 men >35 mm). The opercular patch enlarges. 

 Around the eye, melanophores are added first on 

 the posteroventral margin of the orbit in speci- 

 mens 19 to 23 mm, and eventually line the orbit. A 

 radiating bar of melanophores begins to extend 

 from the posteroventral margin of the orbit on 

 specimens >28 mm, extending onto the preopercle 

 on specimens -30 mm. In the abdominal region, 

 melanophores are added dorsolaterally to the nape 

 and beneath spines V to X of the first dorsal fin 

 forming two pigment patches connected by a dor- 

 sal row of melanophores by 23 mm. The nape patch 

 expands forming a saddle ( first in position) extend- 

 ing from the parietal spine to the third dorsal 

 spine and ventrally to the superior posttemporal 

 spine by 28 mm. Two saddles (second and third) 

 develop from the pigment patch beneath the spi- 

 nous dorsal fin, midfin beneath spines IV to VI and 

 posteriorly beneath spines VIII to XI. These two 

 saddles are separated by a relatively unpigmented 

 area on the dorsum. As they extend more ven- 

 trolaterally, they fuse together in two places just 

 above and below the lateral line creating a second, 

 circular, less pigmented area on specimens >39 

 mm. These two saddles eventually extend to the 

 dorsal portion of the gut cavity by 42 mm. A single 

 external melanophore may occur on the midan- 

 terior margin of the eleithrum beneath the gill 

 cover. In the tail region, the dorsal patch of pig- 

 ment on the caudal peduncle extends to the lateral 

 line forming another saddle by 23 mm which 

 reaches the ventral body margin by 27 mm. Be- 

 neath the second dorsal fin melanophores increase 

 in number and become concentrated along the 

 muscles surrounding the dorsal pterygiophores 

 appearing as vertical lines of pigment by 23 mm. 

 Melanophores also develop at thepoint of articula- 

 tion of all but the anteriormost three or four dorsal 

 soft rays. A melanistic saddle (fourth in position) 

 develops beneath soft dorsal rays 3 to 12 or 13 

 extending ventrolaterally to the body midline by 

 34 mm and three-fourths the distance to the ven- 

 tral margin by 42 mm. The pectoral and pelvic fins 

 are no longer pigmented in specimens >21 mm 

 Pigment develops on the first dorsal fin membrane 

 between spines IX and XI in juveniles '26 mm, 

 eventually forming the "black blotch" characteris- 

 tic of larger juveniles and adults. Melanistic bars 

 form on the first dorsal fin between spines I to III 



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